Ichabod Crane's search for Jack Sparrow
by Rita Hill
Summary: Sleepy Hollow's Ichabod Crane is on an expedition to find a dangerous outlaw, namely Pirate of the Caribbean's Jack Sparrow. Will Crane prove as a threat to Sparrow?
1. Chapter 1: The Expedition of Crane

Ch 1

The Expedition of Constable Crane

"Constable Crane, is it? Your coach is awaiting you, sir," the man said with a polite bow. He instantly arose from his position and led the passenger to the carriage that he spoke of.

There was an unusual chill in the air that night. People roamed the streets urgent to get to their homes as the shimmering moon lent a dreadful effect in the midnight sky. An utter yet distinct cry of a wolf could be heard in the distance which sent chills down Crane's spine, "Here we are now. Enjoy your trip," said the man tilting his hat off to the constable.

"Thank you," Crane responded triumphantly making his way into the carriage.

The carriage driver turned his head to Crane's seat, "Where's it to," questioned the driver.

"Head to the Western Airports. I must catch a flight to the Caribbean," Crane remarked proudly.

Constable Crane was a very proud man although he was a coward. In fact, Crane knew very little about himself and hardly noticed his cowardice. To others, however, his fear was an obvious characteristic. From fear of spiders to fear of thunder and even to frequent swooning people rolled their eyes from the slight mentioning that he was a constable. Poor, misunderstood Crane knew none of this and defined himself the manliest of men.

The man held onto the reigns of the horse, "To the West Airports it is, sir," confirmed the man, "And when must you arrive?"

"As soon as possible," Crane stated.

The man held the horse's reigns firmly in his hands, "Yah," he pulled. In that, Crane and the man rode onward through streets and deeper into darkness.

The horse galloped faster and faster. It rode through busy and lone streets and rode on bumps and potholes. Suddenly, the pace was disturbed by a sudden halt. Crane emerged from his rest in shock, "Are we here, sir," trembled Crane.

"Calm down," the man reassured, "My horse made a sudden stop. But I'll get her to budge, sir."

Crane's eyes emerged, "A sudden stop? What do you propose caused this," Crane asked. The constable tried to arrange his voice in a calm tone but he had failed. Instead, his voice was cheaply arranged in a high stuttering pitch.

The man rolled his eyes laughing to himself, "A squirrel perhaps," he guessed jumping from the coach. He walked to the front of his horse, careful not to startle it. He crept to its face laying his hand on its nose and gently petting it. In his opposite hand he fed the horse a bright orange carrot. Its merry neighs told the driver that the horse was soon to move again.

"As I had guessed, it was nothing to worry about, sir," said the driver returning to his carriage, "She stopped out of hunger. Now that she is fed she will do just fine."

"Ah," sighed Crane in relief, "Carry on then."


	2. Chapter 2: The True Price of Rum

Ch 2

The True Price of Rum

Crane's carriage journeyed through the dark and gruesome night. To pass time, he daydreamed about the Caribbean, his destination. Truth be told, Crane's surroundings have lost there beauty as the large, gothic sky stretched out over the sky. But the Caribbean was quite different. In fact, even at night the island shimmered in a certain fluorescent beauty as the stars shone on the wavy sea.

The Caribbean, described by book, is an area in the West Indies famous for sea pirates. And that was exactly what Crane recognized it as, an area crawling with roguish sea pirates.

After Crane's incident in Sleepy Hollow and failure to bring the criminal to court, the judge mercifully gave Ichabod another chance to prove his worth. However, if he failed to bring the criminal to court or meddled with any other outlaws he was warned that he would lose his jobs.

The constable's expedition seemed simple enough. He was to seek out a cunning criminal by the name of Jack Sparrow, a pirate. However, Crane knew little about this pirate. And this pirate was, to the constable's misfortune, a very clever one. It would take a hard bargain to catch this crook.

Ichabod would most likely enjoy his stay in the Caribbean. However, his trip could be ruined unless he gave up his search. Then and only then, Crane would be able to enjoy the smell of the sea and the sound of the crashing waves like Sparrow did himself.

The sea had been Sparrow's sense of freedom besides piracy. He sailed the seas triumphantly on his ship, the Black Pearl while pillaging and looting merchant ships all for the essence of adventure, "All hands to sails," the captain announced, "Come now you scabrous dogs!"

"Aye, sir," his partner, Gibbs, saluted then repeating the orders, "Men, manage the sails."

There was a small discrepancy on the ship as the only female crewmember on board folded her arms and rolled her eyes, "If you acquire only the men to manage the sails and not the crew I will just stand," she huffed at Gibbs.

Sparrow instantly recognized this woman to be Annamaria who he respected as an independent woman and a fine pirate. In fact, this woman had capabilities that sometimes scared the captain. He smirked sharply and corrected the issue, "All lads and lasses, then," he smiled with his hands tightly around the wooden steer.

Gibbs couldn't bite his tongue, "But, captain, she be a woman. Terrible things happen when a woman does a man's job."

Jack shook his head and sniggered, "What be the purpose of having her aboard then, mate," he said then growing more serious, "Also, realize that it'd be worse luck to make her not do the man's job and not manage these bloody sails. So I say _all _jets to sails means _all _jets to sails, savvy?"

"Aye," Gibbs said overpowered, "What we be looking for anyway, captain?"

Jack smiled at this very notice, "That ship," he said pointing to a tiny merchant ship.

"That ship," Gibbs echoed questionably.

"Aye," Jack responded confidently, "That ship."

With no further question Gibbs approached the rest of the crew to manage the sails and shadow the other ship until further notice on the attack, "One man to cannons," the captain commanded, "Don't attack. Now keep a weathered eye open."

One of the crewmates immediately emerged from his original position to load the cannons, "Now launch them," Jack grinned.

The crewmate grew puzzled, "You said not to attack, captain."

Jack laughed, "Don't attack. Send those cannons towards the ship but into the ocean."

The man, still not entirely sure about the order, listened to Sparrow. The cannons made a loud crackling noise as it shot from the cannon- _blllllassschtttt- _and a low thumping noise at it fell in the ocean nearby the merchant ship- _bllluururp!_

Each fire was the same as the last. They all shared the same sound and flew the same distance. In fact, if the captain hadn't grinned further and further in each dunk each shot would be identical and uneasy to define from the last.

"Their frightened," Jack smiled pulling out his sword, "Tie that ship to ours, we have a trip to make."

"Aye," said the man. Jack nodded and in that instant zoomed through the crashing waves, his fingers tight against the wheel, until the Black Pearl was an inch away from the merchants.

The man hurriedly tied the ships together, "Now what, captain," the man asked.

"Now we attack," Jack said turning to his crew. They intently looked back at him exhausted from sail management.

Jack grinned, "Release the sails," he ordered.

The crew did as he said reporting to him for further orders. Jack had noticed their intent looks and strong anticipation. He shook his head, "Stay," he smiled, "I'm taking my chances."

He jumped from his ship to the next with no allies, as he ordered. His crew remained very confident of Jack and what he had decided. However, they were confused and anxious for his return.

By the time Sparrow had returned, the crew was pale white with anticipation. Finally, a man spoke up, "What was it, captain?"

The captain rose a pure red bottle into the air triumphantly, "That ship was no ordinary ship."

"It wasn't," Gibbs asked.

"Not at all, lads," Jack denied, "The lads were not at all just merchants. They were rum merchants."

The crew frowned as they realized the bottles Jack was holding up in triumph were rum bottles. Sparrow noticing the unpleasant faces immediately spoke up, "Drinks all around…?"


	3. Chapter 3: A Strange Man

Ch 3

A Strange Man

Two nights have passed and Crane had landed successfully on the peaceful Caribbean Islands. The gentle salty breeze filled the air as the triumphant sun glittered to the ground. The heat was enjoyable to the people of the Caribbean but, unpleasant, to Crane who wasn't well adjusted to the burn of the sun being he was from New York.

The constable hadn't stopped to admire the beauty of the new island, not even once. Instead, he was determined to start his search for the fiendish Jack Sparrow and, even more so, he was determined in catching him.

Crane held a case in his right hand full of gadgets, all in which he invented, and a piece of scratch paper in his left hand which had an address clearly scribbled on it in black ink. However, the address came with no directions and being the island was a new land to the constable, he was lost and like other men who become lost, he determined whether or not to stop for directions.

The constable finally admitted defeat and, even more so, admitted his need for directions. He paused to find a man. Crane almost immediately noticed a man straight ahead of him. He looked rather poor and very uneducated, however, Crane realized it was hopeless to find anyone else in the vacancy, "You, sir," called the constable.

The man suddenly paused to look in Crane's direction. Noticing no other men were around him, the man approached the constable. He looked confused but intent, "Yes," asked the man.

Crane cleared his throat and straightened his posture, "Do you know where this may be," he asked holding up the shriveled paper proudly.

The man looked closer to the paper, "Yes, I do," the man responded.

The response was followed by a sudden hesitation. Crane patiently waited for the man to explain the way, however, there was a sudden uncertainty, "Oh, do you," the constable asked, "Then you know the directions, I would gather?"

The shaggy man nodded, "Yes, I do, sir," responded the man.

There was a certain force and tenseness in the man's voice. Crane nearly interrogated him; however, he immediately forced himself to bite his tongue. He was in the Caribbean for one man and one man only, and that man was Jack Sparrow. Anyway, questioning another man may just lose the constable his job.

Ichabod raised his eyebrow suspiciously, "You said you know the directions, didn't you? What are they?"

The man swallowed, "I beg your pardon," he questioned.

Ichabod rolled his eyes, "The directions! What are the directions to this residence," he exclaimed.

The man closed his eyes as if Crane were to attack him, "Oh, yes. If you insist I can take you there, sir," the man smiled uneasily.

The constable denied the man instantly. He hadn't wanted a man of his sort directing him physically, "No—no," Crane responded, "There is no need."

The man shrugged and nodded, "Alright," he said. In that, the man immediately began to walk away.

Crane shook his head in disgust, "How can a man be so dense," he asked to himself. It had been obvious that something was wrong and it became harder and harder for the constable to keep sealed. It became nearly impossible for Crane to hold himself back from questioning. Instead, he closed his eyes and focused on the purpose of his voyage.

He followed the man from behind and continued, "Excuse me, sir," Ichabod pardoned, "You said you know the directions to this residence? Can you or can you not tell me what those are?"

The startled man turned to Crane. The man looked at Crane edgily, "Why didn't you say that before, sir," the man responded.

The constable continued, "I have. Look- it doesn't matter. Can you just tell me how to get to this residence?"

The man shook his head, "No, I can't," the man responded, "I don't know the directions offhand. I only know how to get there by walk."

Crane rolled his eyes, "Do you," the constable asked slightly aggravated, "Will you take me," he surrendered walking off with the awkward stranger.


	4. Chapter 4: Two Against One

Ch 4

Two Against One

"Here it is, sir," said the man.

He took a few steps away from Crane satisfied that he had helped the constable find his way. However, rather than being thankful in return, Crane remained suspicious of the shaggy man. In fact, he could hardly contain himself from intruding in this man's business. He finally decided that it would be the right thing to do. It might come to his benefit in the time come, anyway and perhaps it might lead him to the pirate, "Pardon me again, sir," Crane apologized, "May I ask of you name?"

By this time, the man had walked a great distance from the constable. It was unimportant to the man anyway. He still heard every word the constable had said, and in response, turned to face him. Other then that, he hadn't approached the constable. Instead, he felt it rather appropriate to recite his name from the distance, "Murtogg, sir," the man shouted.

Crane tied his hands behind his back like a detective and approached the man nosily, "Yes, Mr. Murtogg, is it," Crane responded, "I have a question for you. Why were you walking alone before in that vacant area?"

The man smiled. The man hadn't seemed insulted at all. Instead, it seemed he enjoyed the conversation, "Isn't that funny? I was going to raise that same question. In fact, I found it quite suspicious that you were alone in that vacant area, also," he laughed, "I suppose it's like they say: two great minds think alike."

Crane shook his head, "_You _were suspicious of _me_? Apparently it hadn't occurred to you that this is my first trip to the Caribbean," he confirmed, "After all, there is no need to be suspicious of me. I am a constable of New York."

The man remained kind and tamed, "Oh, I see. How did you know it wasn't my first time to this island as of yours," the man asked.

Crane grew heightened, "You knew the directions to this residence," he verified.

The man bashfully laughed, "Now that's just common sense!"

Crane blinked unable to comprehend the man. Had he been calling him an idiot, a moron, an imbecile? The constable had not heard such a phrase said to him before and, in return, didn't know how to answer it. Instead, he turned to the iron gates and minded his own business once and for all.

The man cleared his throat behind him, "Sir," the man continued, "Would you like me to open those gates for you?"

Crane turned to the man looking stunned, "You have authority to open the gates of the commodore's household," he asked.

The man nodded swollen with pride, "Yes, sir," the man chirped proudly, "I work for the royal navy."

Crane looked horrified, "You work for the royal navy?"

The man nodded again, "Yes, I do."

The constable snapped to his senses and quietly laughed to himself. He knew an idiot like this Murtogg couldn't possible be apart of the queen's royal navy. Such a thing was not logically possible, not even in fairy tales, "No, you don't," Crane denied knowingly.

The man's face dropped. His insult was written allover his expression. He nodded again, "Yes, I do," he affirmed.

The constable squinted his eyes, "No, you don't," he protested.

"Yes, I do," Murtogg exclaimed truthfully.

Crane smiled. He was so confident in his decision that he formulated a plan to prove himself right. He smiled sharply, "You do? Then open the gate. Go on!"

The man smiled. He could hardly wait to prove the constable wrong and himself right. He slipped the key into the lock. Murtogg drew the constable's suspense as he turned to him knowingly. Crane, in return, intently glared back at the man examining his every move. Murtogg, with his eyes steady on the constable, turned they key in the lock. The constable's heart sank as Murtogg lightly lifted the key out of the lock and pressed his hand against the thick gate. Suddenly in a gentle- _swoosh- _the gate opened.

"Welcome to the Commodore's household," laughed Murtogg victoriously, "Enjoy your stay."

Crane could hardly believe his eyes. But instead of pursuing the matter, he went on his separate way ignoring it. He had no need for his logical mind to be further corrupted with questions upon how this man became a member of the queen's royal navy.

Crane took another step inside the gates to enter the household. The premise was beautiful. Beds of flowers, tall trimmed grass, and the smell of fountains surrounded Crane. But, like usual, the constable hardly recognized it and continued on his expedition lurking up the circular stairs to the pure white house of the commodore.

He intently examined the white marble door, "Hello," Crane knocked, "It is I, Constable Crane of New York."

The door suddenly creaked open, "Crane," answered a woman, "Why, come in! Norrington has been talking so much about you."

Crane smiled, "Is that so," the constable asked proudly whilst admiring the girl. She spread her glossy clover lips into a smile and stepped aside allowing her rosemary dreadlocks to bounce to her side. Her slim body was rapped in a silky peach dress which shimmered in the light of the window.

Her smile widened baring her beautiful pearly teeth, "Why of course," she giggled, "You must be the idiot in which the judge of New York placed in the hands of Norrington to baby-sit?"

Crane's eyes emerged, "What," the constable asked in astonishment.

"Do make yourself comfortable," she continued directing him to the quilted seats, "Sit down whilst you wait."

----

Please note (8/18/05): I'm sorry for my lack of updates. I'll be writing the next chapter soon. Bare with me!


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